Power input control for welldrilling hoists



April 4, E950 A. R. MAIER POWER INPUT coNTRoL FOR wELL DRILLING HoIsTs' Filed Jan. so, 1945 3 Shets-Sheet 1 I I I I I I I I I I .J

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April 4, E956 4 A. R. MAIR 25029969.

POWER INPUT CONTROL FOR WELL DRILLING HOISTS Filed Jan. 30, 1945 3 SheetS-Sheet 2 INVENTORJ 42/5057' E Mfl/fe,

APl'i 49 E950 A. R. MAHER POWER INPUT CONTROL FOR WELI. DRILLNG`HOISTS 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed Jan. 50, 1945 INVENTORJ ,dwa-57' E; MQ/EE.

Patented Apr. 4, 1950 POWER. INPUT CONTROL FOR WELL- DRILLING HOIS'I'S Augustrlt. Maier, Oil City, Pa., assignor to Oil Well Supply Company, a corporation of New Jersey Application January 30, 1945, Serial No. 575,307

8 Claims.

My invention relates to improvements in a power input control for well drilling hoists, and contemplates a selective integrated control for the power delivered to the hoist in both forward and reverse directions, together with the selective application of a neutral or lnertia brake thereto.

This invention has in view the provision of a forward clutch, reversing means and an inertia brake located on the power input shaft and having a single means for actuating the same independently and in any sequence of operation, whereby the operator may readily control the power delivered to the hoist in accordance with drilling requirements.

Also, the invention contemplates in such a unitary control, the selective speed control of one or two prime movers, and the combined control of two prime movers, to further enable flexibility of power control to the hoist and to other drilling equipment in accordance with drilling requirements.

Additional objects and advantages of my invention will become apparent from the following description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, wherein:

Fig. 1 is a schematic plan view of a well drilling hoist'embodying my invention;

Fig. 2 is a partial side view thereof, showing the inertia brake and its actuating means;

Flg. 3 is an elevational view, partly in section. illustrating the master clutch;

Fig. 4 is a sectional view taken on the line IV-IV of Fig. 1, showing the master clutch reverse brake and its actuating means;

Fig. 5 is an elevational view of the power input control for the hcist;

Fig. 6 is' a longitudinal sectional view of the control of Fig. 5;

Fig. '7 is a sectional view taken on the line VII-VII of Fig. 5; and

Fig. 8 is a sectional view taken on the line VIII- V111 of Fig. 5.

Referring to the drawings, Fig. 1 illustrate's a hoisting unit incorporating a drawworks generally similar to that shown in my prior Patent No.

2,315,157, issued March 30, 1943. Mounted upon one end of a suitable base structure 2 are a pair of prime movers, as for example, internal combustion engines 3 and 3a, arranged in parallel relation transversely of said base with engine 3a having .a driving connection a with engine 3 between shaft extensions 3b and 3c of said engines.

vshaft extension 3a of engine 3 is provided with a pulley 4 connected to the pulley 5 of a master 2 reverse clutch 6 by means of belts 1, said clutch -being mounted on and driving a transverse horizontal power input or jack shaft 8 rotatably supported on the base 2.

The jack shaft 8 drives the line shaft |2 which in turn drives drum shaft |3, both of said shafts being rotatably supported in parallelism by suitable frames and bearings. Shaft |3 carries a drum L4 for the hoisting cable. The drive to the line shaft is accomplished through a pair of clutch-controlled sprockets |5 and I 6 rotatable on thejack shaft 8 and being chain connected with sprcckets Il 'and |8, respectively, on the line shaft |2, the said respective sprockets selectively driving said line shaft at different speeds through a clutch |9 slidable on the jack shaft between sprockets |5 and IG.

Line shaft |2 drives the drum shaft |3 through selective speed chain drives, including sprockets 20 and 2| on said line shaft and respective sprockets 22 and 23 on the drum shaft, the latter having clutches 24 and 25 respectively.

The jack shaft 8 also drives a rotary drive shaft 26 carried in suitable bearings through selective speed chain drives, including sprockets 21 and 28 on the jack shaft respectively connecting sprockets 29 and 30 on the rotary drive shaft, the latter having clutches 3| and 32 respectively. Sprockets 21 and 28 comprise a double sprocket loosely mounted on the jack shaft and has a coactlng clutch 58 for selectively connecting the dual sprocket to said shaft. An outboard sprocket 33 onthe shaft 26 drives a rotary (not shown) by means of a chain 34 and a double idler sprocket 35 supported on a suitable trunnion.

As disclosed in my said prior patent, the selective transmission of power from the power input or jack shaft 8 through the foregoing chain drives to the drum shaft is controlled through a shift lever 48 through suitable connections to the clutch 99, and by means of foot pedals and 56 respectively actuating clutches 25 and 24. Also, through suitable linkages, a foot pedal 60 actuates clutch 58, and a Shift lever 64 actuates the clutches 3| and 32 to selectively drive the rotary drive shaft 26 from said jack shaft. During the operation 'of said drives, the power input to and direction of rotation of the jack shaft are controlled by the master reverse clutch 6.

My invention particularly relates to the selectiv e integrated control and operation of the master clutch 6, the reverse brake i therefor, and an inertia or neutral brake 65 on the power input or jack shaft 8, whereby the transmission of power to the hoist and the operation of the multiple speed drives to the drum and rotary drive shafts may be accomplishcd with minimum eifort and with the speed required in well drilling practice. In addition, the said selective control provides for the speed or throttle control of one or 'both of the engines I and 3a.

To these ends, the master clutch 6 is fluidactuated as by means of an infiatable continuous rubber tube 66 carried by and within an annular housing 61 kcyed to the jack shaft 8, and having a brake band liner 68 adapted to engage a clutch drum 69 freely rotatable on said shaft and .bolted to the free pulley 5, as shown in Fig. 3. A spider 10 is likewise secured to pulley and includes an outer planetary gear 1 mashing with planetary intermediate idler gears 12 carried by a second spider 13 'bolted to the drum I 14 of the reverse brake IO, which drum is freely rotatable on the jack shaft. An inner planetary gear 15 meshes with the idlers 12 and is keyed to said jack shaft.

Hence, upon inflating the member 66, the jack shaft 8 may be driven through housing 61 in a forward direction from pulley 5. Upon releasing said for'ward drive and actuating the brake band 16 of reverse brake |0, the spider 13 is held stationary and shaft 8 is thereby driven in a reverse direction from pulley 5 through the planeta-ry 'gear system. The inertia brake 65 through its brake -band 11 is employcd to retard the speed of the jack shaft and its rotating parts as hereinafter set forth, the drum 18 of said brake being keyed to said shaft.

For the purpose of selectively actuating the master clutch, its reverse brake and the inertia brake in any sequence, I provide a three-way metering fluid valve 19 having a single operating handle or lever 80 movable in a T-slot 8| in the valve casing to admit fiuid from a supply line 82, such as an air pressure line, to three outlets, each controlled by said travel of the lever in a leg of the T-slot. When said lever is positioned at the juncture of the legs of the T-slot, the valve mechanism connects all of said outlets to the atmosphere and closes the supply line 82. Such a valve likewise delivers variable prcssures from zero to maximum supply pressure in accordance with the movement of the lever 80 from said juncture to the extremities of each of the legs of the T-slot.

The two outlets ofsaid valve 19 corresponding to and controlled by movement of the lever 80 in the aligned legs e and of the T-slot 82 are each connected with a fluid line as follows. The outlet corresponding to leg c is connected by a line 83 with the clutch tube 66 of the master clutch through a swivel 84 and a communicating conduit 85 on the clutch housing 61, and the outlet corresponding to leg is connected by a line 86 with a fluid cylinder 81 secured to the base 2, the piston of said cylinder being connected to the free end of the brake band 11 of the inertia brake 65 through a bel] crank 88.

The outlct of valve 19 corresponding to and controlled by the lateral travel of the lever 80 in the intermediate right angle leg g of the T-slot 8| is connected by a line 89 to a fluid cylinder 90 secured to the base 2, the piston thereof being connected to the free end of brake band 16 of reverse brake |0 through a bell crank 9|. The valve 19 therefore comprises a unit. selectively actuating the master clutch, its reverse brakc and the inertia brake, combined with a control means in the following manner.

Positioned above and extendng parallel to the justed by the resulting movement of its throttle,

4 aligned legs e and of the T-slot 8| ofl valve 19, I provide hand controls including a control shaft 92 slida'bly and rotatably disposed in spaced bearings 93 and 9| carried by the supporting structure 95 of the hoist. 'I'he shaft 92 is provided -with a handwheel 96 at the outer end thereof, and intermediate its length and immediately above the valve 19, is provided with a square collar 91 freely pivoted thereon and reciprocable therewith, said collar having lateral trunnions 98 thereon whose axis extends parallel with the leg g of the T-slot 8| in said valve. The trunnions 98 are entered in the Vertical slots 99 of a bifurcated yoke |00, the latter having a pin and clevis connection |0| with the lever 80 of valve 19, the pivotal axis of the pin and clevis connection being disposed at right angles to the axis of said trunnions 98. By means of such connection, sliding movement of the shaft 92 will move the control lever 80 of said valve in the legs e and of the T-slot 8|. When said control lever is in the intermediate or "neutral" position at the juncture of the legs of said T-slot,

the control lever 80 may be moved laterally into the leg g of the T-slot 8| by means of a hand lever |02, as more particularly shown in the dotted line position of Fig. 7.

The bearing 93 mounts a sleeve |03 telescoped over the shaft 92, which sleeve rotata'biy sup-` ports a sprocket |04 having a handwheel |05 rotatable therewith. The hub of the handwheel is provided with a jam nut |06, coacting with a washer |01 keycd to the shaft 92, whereby the handwheel |05 and sprocket |04 may be locked for rotation with the shaft 92 by means of the pressure of the jam nut against a fiber washer |08 interposed between the washer |01 and a transverse face |09 on the hub of handwheel 105. The keyed engagement of the washer |01 with shaft 92 includes an elongated longitudinal keyway ||0 in said shaft to permit sliding movement of the latter at all times.

Mounted in parallel spaced relation to the shaft 92, are telescoped throttle shafts, including an inner shaft and an outer shaft ||2, the said shafts being supported in suitable bearings I |3 and ll, the iatter bearing being positioned on the cover or framework of the engine 3. The shaft is provided with a sprocket ||5 which is connected by a chain with sprocket IM, and the end of said shaft adjacent the engine 9 is provided with a sprocket ||6 which is connected by a continuous chain |1 with a rotatable sprocket control ||8 of engine 3a, as illustrated inFig. 1.

The outer shaft 2 is provided with a sprocket ||9 which is connected with a sprocket |20 on the shaft 92, the said sprocket |20 having keyed At the end thereof adjacent the engine 3, the

shaft ||2 is provided with a pulley |2| which is connected by a suitable belt l22 with a rotatable pulley throttie control |23 on the engine 3.

The shaft 92, handwheels 96 and |05, and valve 19 with its hand lever 102, are conveniently located adjacent to the position of the driller when operating the hoist. Upon moving the control shaft 92 inward to the "forward position of Fig. 5, the control lever 80 of valve 19 is moved into slot e, thereby admitting air to infiate the tube 66 of the master clutch 6, whereby the power input shaft 8 is driven in a forward direction by the engines 3 and 3a. By rotation of the handwheel 96, the speed of engine 3 may be adand similariy handwheel I Il may be-rotated to control the speed of engine 3a. In addition to such independent control of the engine throttles, upon adjustment of the jam nut I", the'throtties of both of the engines may be simultaneously adjusted by rotation of either of the handwheels 9| and HIS.

In order to prevent grabbing of the master clutch 6, I prefer to provide a choke IN in the line 83 which will have a reduced opening therethrough to prevent the sudden application of full fluid pressure upon the clutch.

As the control shaft 92 is moved to the "neutral" or intermediate position, as shown in Fig. 5, the air line 83 to the master clutch O will be exhausted'gto the atmosphere, and while the same may beaccomplished through the action of valve '19 alon' vI prefer to provide a self-acting, quick release valve |25 positioned in the line 83 adjacent the clutch and between said clutch and the choke |24, which valve is immediately operable upon release of the pressure in said line to release the air in said clutch. Hence, in the "neutral position, no power is applied to the s'haft 8.

Continued outward movement of the control shaft 92 to the "inertia brake" position of Fig. 5, moves the -control lever 80 -in slot of the valve 19 to energize the inertia brake 65 by supplying air to its cylinder Bi. Such braking action will serve to slow down or stop the rotation of shaft 8 and its parts, to enable the manipulation of the various `iaw clutches of the hoist, as by means of the controls 4B, 64, 55, 56 and 60.

To reverse the direction of rotation of the power input shaft B and therefore the operation of the hoist, the control shaft 92 is placed in neutral'' position, and the operator moves the lever 80 of valve 79 into slot g by means of the reverse lever M12.

It will therefore be seen that I have provided an integrated control for the power input shaft of the hoist whereby the operator may readily and quickly drive the hoist in either forward or reverse-direction, and whereby the momentum of the rotating parts of the hoist may be quickly retarded when changing the direction of rotation or when it is desired to stop the hoist drive for any reason. Also, by means of said control, the operator may regulate the speed of the drive, either by simultaneously adjusting both engine throttles or by individually regulating the same, as for example, when only one engine is connected to the input shaft 8, i. e., engine 3, and engine 3a is employed for driving a slush pump or the like by means of a pulley and belt |2S driven by shaft extension 3b. Likewise, a throttle control may be readily provided for` a single engine drive through shaft 92, sprockets U9 and |20 and pulley l2i only.

The employment of the fiuid-actuated means for the master clutch and its reverse brake, as well as for the inertia brake, and the combination thereof with the control means, whereby the operation of said elements is individually applicable to the power input to the hoist without excessive physical exertion, provides for highly efficient and fiexible operation of the hoist.

Various changes and modifications are contemplated within the scope of the following claims.

I claim:

1. In a well drilling hoist, the combination with a power input shaft, of means for driving said shaft from a prime mover including a forward clutch and a reversing means onv the shaft, an inertia brake on said shaft, actuating means for each of said clutch, reversing means and brake, and a single control for energizmg said actuating means individually in any sequence, said control including means deenergizing said actuating means prior to completing any said sequence. i

2. In a well drilling hoist, the combination with a power input shaft, of means for driving said shaft from a prime mover including a fiuidactuated forward clutch and a fiuid-actuated reversing means on the shaft, a fiuid-actuated inertia brake on the shaft, a three-way fiuid valve connected with a source of fiuid supply, and fiuid conduits connecting said valve and each of said clutch, reversing means and brake, said valve being operable to connect said conduits with the fiuid supply individually in any sequence and having means exhausting said conduits to the atmosphere between sequential connections of said valve and conduits.

3. In a well drilling hoist, the combination with a power input shaft. of means for driving said shaft from a prime mover including a fiuidactuated forward clutch and a fiuid-actuated reversing means on the shaft, a fiuid-actuated inertia brake on the shaft, a three-way fluid valve connected with a source of fiuid supply, fiuid conduits connecting said valve and each of said clutch, reversing means and brake, said valve being operable to connect said conduits with the fiuid supply individually in any sequence and having means exhausting said conduits to the atmosphere between sequential connections of said valve and conduits, a fiuid choke in the forward clutch conduit, and a quick release valve in said conduit between said clutch and choke.

4. In a well drilling hoist, the combination with a power input shaft, of means for driving said shaft from a prime mover including a fiuidactuated forward clutch and a planetary reverse gearing on the shaft, a fiuid-,actuated brake for the planetary reverse gearing. an inertia brake on said shaft, actuating means for each of said clutch, planetary reverse brake and inertia brake, and a single control for energizing said actuating means individually in any sequence, said control including means deenergizing said actuating means prior to completing any said sequence.

5. In a well drilling hoist, the combination With a power input shaft, of means for driving said shaft from a prime mover including a forward clutch and a'reversing means on the shaft, an inertia brake on said shaft, actuating means for each of said clutch, reversing means and brake,

a single device for energizing said actuating means individually in any sequence, said device including means for deenergizing said actuating means prior to completing any said sequence, and an adjustable throttle control for said prime mover, said control being mounted for movement independently of said throttle adjustment and connected with said single device for actuatlng the latter by said movement.

S. In a well drilling hoist, the combination with a power input shaft, of means for driving said shaft from a prime mover including a fiuidactuated forward clutch and a fiuid-actuated reversing means on the shaft, a fiuid-actuated inertia brake on the shaft, a three-way fluid valve connected with a source of fiuid supply, fluid conduits connecting said valve and each of said clutch, reversing means and brake, said valve being operable to connect said conduits with the meczach fluid supply individually, and an adjustable throttle control for said prime mover, said control'being mounted for movement independently of said throttle adjustment and connected with said valve for actuating the latter by said movement.

7. In a well drilling hoist, the combination with a power input shaft, of means for drivlng said shaft from a prime mover including a fluidactuated forward clutch and a fiuid-actuated reversing means on the shaft, a fluid-actuated inertia brake on the shaft, a three-way fluid valve connected with a source of fluid supply. said valve having an Operating lever movable between two aligned positions on either side of a neutral position and a third position laterally of said neutral position, said valve having fluid conduits individually connected by said three locations of the valve lever with the fluid supply and with the atmosphere in said neutral position, and a reciprocable control engaging the valve lever for movement thereof between its said aligned positions, said lever being disengageable therefrom in neutral position for independent lateral movement in its said third position. said fluid conduits being individually connected with the forward clutch, reversing means and inertia brake whereby the same may be energized individually in any sequence.

8. In a well drilling hoist, the combination with a power input shaft, of means for driving said shaft from a prime mover including a fluidactuated forward clutch and a fluid-actuated reversing means on the shaft, a fiuid-actuated inertia brake on the shaft, a three-way fluid valve connected with a source of fluid supply, said valve having an Operating lever movable between 8 two aligned positlons on either side of a neutral position and a third position laterally of said neutral position, said valve having fluid conduit's individualiy connected by said three locations of the valve lever with the fluid supply and with the atmosphere in said neutral position, and a reciprocable control engaging the valve lever for movement thereof between its said aligned positions. said lever being disengageable from said control in neutral position for independent lateral movement in its said third position, said fluid conduits being individually connected with the forward clutch, reversing means and inertia brake whereby the same may be energized individually in any sequence, said control being rotatable and having rotatable connection with the throttle o! said prime mover independently of the reciprocation of said control.

AUGUST R.. MAIER..

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

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